Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Hard to believe February is almost in the books and I won't even crack double digits in blog posts this month. So much for my goal of posting 3-4 times per week.

I could come up with a litany of excuses, most of them viable, but any time I hear the word "excuse," I have flashbacks to my junior high PE teacher who always used to say what excuses were like, that everyone had them and they all stink.

Discretionary income has been at a premium lately, and other than a couple of trades, I haven't acquired much recently. I have been able to put a dent in the 2013 flagship, the one set I will vow to complete because I am a traditionalist, and I would feel weird not doing so.

In the meantime, I have come across some cards needing a better home than what I can give them, cards that would fill up spaces in a binder or help boost up a player collection. My hope is to get these "care packages" together in the next couple of days and in the mail by Saturday. Kind of a "thanks for trading with me" and "thought you'd like these" gesture on my part.

I still am overwhelmed by the generosity that pervades the blogosphere. I have a trade recap that I am way behind in posting, but not for lack of appreciation. Let's just say the package I received was far and away beyond anything I would have expected.

If you are someone filling out a 2013 Series 1 set, I do have quite a few extras sitting around, so send me your list and I'll try to help you out. I should have my complete want and trade list for Series 1 flagship up tomorrow.

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

I am aware of three certain things in life: death, taxes, and spring beginning in February.

All you "by the book" types can stick to your conventional calendars, which indicate this year's vernal equinox will be happening on Wednesday, March 20. However, I'll already be into a month of celebrating my favorite season of the year by then.

"Spring
training is like a cat with nine lives. A baseball player has
X
number of lives and each spring is the birth of a new life."
--Steve Garvey

"Spring
training means flowers, people coming outdoors, sunshine, optimism, and
baseball. Spring training is a time to think about being
young
again."
--Ernie Banks

Such optimism expressed in the above quotes. To me, that is one of the best things about spring training. The aches, pains, injuries, and disappointments of the previous season are in the rear view mirror.. Every team is 0-0 in the win/loss column, and if you were able to interview anyone associated with baseball, almost every one, to a man, would tell you that "this year is the year."

"People who write about spring training not being necessary have never
tried to throw a baseball."
--Sandy Koufax

Throwing a baseball overhand is one of the most unnatural and violent acts one can do. Throwing that ball at a high velocity repeatedly over the course of a season, year in and year out, initiates a lot of stress and wear to an arm. Spring training is very necessary, especially for pitchers, to get back into a routine that will be their livelihood for 8 to 9 months of the year.

Thankfully, the hype of a young prospect who has never played above single-A can be tempered somewhat, even though said prospect is raking against major league pitching. Spring training statistics have to be taken with a grain of salt, especially since a majority of at-bats aren't coming against major league pitching, and a lot of pitchers aren't facing major league hitting. It's a time to separate the men from the boys, and the girls from the little girls, and spring games aren't an exact barometer of judging talent.

However, it does mean we are that much closer to the start of another regular season, a season where we live and die with our favorite team and player, root against the divisional rivals, appreciate the ending of long-time careers and hitch our wagon to the "next big thing" when it comes to prospects.

The smell of the fresh-cut grass. The crack of a bat crushing a ball over the left field wall. The pop of the first baseman's mitt after catching a throw from deep in the hole at short. The smiles of young and old, fans and players alike. The dash and hustle of a centerfielder covering copious amounts of ground to snag a gapper and save a double.

Just a few reasons why I love this game, and why baseball is and always will be my favorite sport, nay, pastime.

Saturday, February 2, 2013

Trade number 6 of 2013 is courtesy of Roy over at Plain Gray Swatch. Roy sent me an e-mail and let me know he could help me out with my 2011 Topps Update want list, and had some Barves I might be interested in. I had some 2012 Topps Update and 2012-13 OPC hockey Roy needed, and soon a deal was made.

I've been making more of an effort to trade for the various colored Topps parallels, and Roy did not disappoint. Although Prado is no longer in Atlanta, I can't pass up a chance to add some shiny refractor Chrome goodness to the collection.

A bevy of Bravos

If you aren't a regular reader of Plain Gray Swatch, do yourself a favor and check out Roy's blog today.